On 15 June 2015 the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published a concluding statement following consultations with the Netherlands government under Article IV of the IMF’s articles of agreement.
The statement notes that the Netherlands economy continues to improve with increased investment, exports and private consumption. There are however risks from recent exchange rate movements, oil price movements and the uncertainty in the Euro area. Although competitiveness has been boosted by the depreciation of the Euro against the dollar any reversal in this trend could become a drag on the economy.
The Netherlands government has taken important measures to deal with inefficiency in the housing market, address problem in the financial sector, implement pension and labor reforms and for fiscal consolidation.
The government has formulated principles for reform for employment and growth. The IMF staff support these principles including unification of most VAT rates at the standard rate, reducing the tax incentives for real estate, and reducing labor taxes. The IMF considers that the reforms could increase the efficiency of the tax system and that a substantial tax reform could also involve simplifying the areas of the tax system that are a compliance burden for taxpayers and the administration.
